bakerstreet | quote prompt;

[ the honesty in the middle of that mess that is vader, not really anakin, nearly makes her cry. that's all she's wanted, for so long. just anakin back, anakin being honest with her, anakin at her side.

ahsoka thumbs the curve of her lightsaber hilts to remind herself of what she's fighting for as she gathers courage for a response. ]

You know I'm with the Rebellion. I have an obligation to them. I have to make sure they'll be okay.

Traitors!

[He practically snarls the word. Dark hatred radiates from him through the Force. Ironically loyalty still matters to him and the rebels had betrayed the Empire and the peace he was trying to bring to the galaxy.

Still... He calms himself again, this was more important than a handful of rebels.]

Join me and if they will renounce their actions.... I will spare their lives.

Edited 2016-07-10 22:33 (UTC)

They're not traitors! They are my friends, my allies, the very people your Empire has backed into a corner with injustice.

[ so that there's no way out but fighting for them. ironic, then, that ahsoka is getting the hunch that if she doesn't make up her mind soon, she's going to be fighting her way out of here, too. ]

[He fumes quietly, his own conflict bubbling up to the surface. Early on he had his doubts about some of the actions the Empire was taking. His master assured him they were simply the birth pangs of this new order, that they would pass once the galaxy was properly pacified.]

They plotted from the moment the Emperor ascended to the throne.

[He was doing the right thing. Bringing the Empire's justice to the irredeemable. It would all be worth it in the end.

Force, he could really use that latte right now.]

No. They brought it on themselves...

[He doesn't say it with as much conviction as he'd like.]

Edited 2016-07-11 03:54 (UTC)

The rebellion is people who never asked to be repressed. People who are doing all they can not to be slaves to an unfair Empire.

[ she still believes that order and peace is possible. in her own twisted way, she's just as much a peacekeeper now as she was during the clone wars. it's just even muddier morally, as if it wasn't bad enough before.

and so, in the interest of peace, she aims a low blow - ] You of all people should have sympathy for slaves, Anakin.

[He was almost with her, except that he would insist that the Empire doesn't repress people. It sometimes has to pacify worlds that are incapable of maintaining peace and order.]

...What

[Almost with her until the last part. Because having that thrown in his face hits him as hard as any physical blow could. He never spoke of his past to Ahsoka. So, how then did she know to use this against him? All that rage wells up again but this time it's as much directed at himself as her.

The Jedi had turned a blind eye to slavery when it was exactly the sort of thing they should have been fighting against. They had forced him to compromise on Zygerria, to betray his own feelings. He could have freed everyone... they wouldn't allow it. he would make them suffer for that, every bit as much as he had. Every. Last. One.

And now the Empire... He'd had to concede to enslavement of worlds over genocide. Once the Empire was secure, the outer rim brought to heel... his master assured him they would finally end slavery once and for all. He would free them this time.]

[ it wasn't something she had really meant to learn. a comment from obi-wan after rescuing her people from the zygerrians, a hunch, a question about the skywalker name on his hated tatooine. it added up, but this was her first time acknowledging it out loud.

it was, after all, his secret to keep buried. unless she can use it as a weapon for negotiation. ]

I know you. [ knew him would be more accurate, but she wants to get through to him. behind her wall of steam, she lets out a breath and lowers herself to her knees, letting peace emanate from her in the force. maybe she can calm some of that anger. or maybe this is how she'll be when he finally comes for her, red lightsaber all too telling. ]

I know that you wanted there to be good in the galaxy. I want that, too.

It can't exist without peace and peace won't exist without order.

[He raises his lightsaber and steps into the steam.]

I will bring order to the galaxy.

[Is she really just kneeling there... doing the whole 'one the Force and at peace' thing? RUDE.

He should kill her just for that! She should know better than to not be on guard against an enemy. Against him.
He should kill her because he hates her. He missed her.
He should kill her because she betrayed him. She did what he couldn't.
He should kill her because his master commands it.

And he hesitates.

Well, kriff.

He lowers the lightsaber, it's not deactivated but it's not ready to strike her down.]

So long as your friends sow chaos I will stand against them. I won't let the galaxy be dragged back into a war Ahsoka.

[ she's looking up at him by the time he comes to her with his lightsaber drawn, but she trusts him too much in that moment to get her own pair from her hips. and her trust pays off. ]

I don't want a war any more than you do. But the rebellion won't stop fighting until the Empire stops making things worse for them, for everyone. [ she shakes her head, looking up at them with those wide, bright blue eyes she's always had. even in the grim lighting, they stand out. ] You have to find a way to peace that doesn't require suppressing them.

I know you can do it, Anakin. But you have to see why the rebellion is what it is, why these are my allies now, when I couldn't help you.

You should have been able to!

[He needed you and you weren't there. He was going mad with worry and the only person he could talk to was Palpatine. And that didn't exactly end well... but his hate for his master was nothing compared to his hate for the Jedi.

He grips the saber tighter, killing her is so tempting right now. Fortunately he's not as prone to blind rage as he was early on. He's totally getting the hang of the Sith thing.]

You can still help me. Make up for what you couldn't do before.

Together we can make the Empire what it should be.

I want to do that. [ she does, with full honesty. her time with anakin might have been short, compared to the rest of her life, but it made her who she was in so many ways. he had meant a lot to ahsoka. he still did. ]

But I need your word that while I'm at your side, until we get rid of the Emperor, you'll do what you can to stop the fight against the Rebel Alliance. I can talk my side into a ceasefire if you can do the same for yours.

[ and if he can't agree to that, she needs to be gone from here as fast as she can. ]

[He thinks about that for a while. She is naive to think negotiations will work at this time... but she has left him room to work with.]

I will do what I can.

It may be less than you hope for though. The Emperor must not become suspicious about what we plan or it will be for nothing.

[And he will be forced to kill her to prove his loyalty.]

So long as you do do what you can. [ she knows she can't trust him blindly, but she does miss him. moreover, she knows there's still good inside of him somewhere, so it's worth trying to bring him back.

it's anakin. of course it's worth trying to bring him back. ]

I can keep helping them from your side.

Good. You will return to the Rebels and wait until I contact you. Remember, they can't find out that you are with me.

Not yet.

[He takes a step back and raises his lightsaber once more.]

Now we have to make your escape convincing. I will continue to hunt you down with my men, don't let them capture you.

Edited 2016-07-14 16:03 (UTC)

[ she gives a short nod. ]

I hope to see you again soon, Skyguy.

[ the nickname has never sounded so very sad before, but ahsoka wants him to hear it, in case it helps somehow. that's the end of the conversation, though, and she's as quick as ever as she draws her lightsabers, igniting them as she goes from kneeling to one knee. then it's from one knee to lunging at him, low and aiming to be at the perfect spot to intercept his lightsaber when he inevitably brings it down on her. his fighting style may have changed since they last sparred together, but hers hardly has, save a few new tricks, so he should be able to anticipate her movements in a convincing fake fight if she drops him a few tells. ]

[If she truly does think it will help then boy is she going to be surprised. He'd put up with her calling him Anakin, but Skyguy... that's just going too far.

It's embarrassing.

He makes an angry growl as he swings his blade down, far harder than what would be necessary just to make it look convincing. Any flourish to his swing is gone, making his style cold and almost mechanical in it's minimalism.
This fight will be convincing because he's not pretending. Let's face it, he's always been a bit of a rubbish liar and going to Dark Side didn't do a lot to change that. Pretending to fight would just look silly on his end.

Still, he's not fighting with the intent to kill her. His goal is to drive her back and over the edge behind her. He knows that she can defend herself against him. So he presses his attack, swinging again and not giving her time for a counter attack.]

[ part of the reason ahsoka has always fallen back on her double saber setup is exactly for moments like this. she can block every swing he makes at her, sometimes with one lightsaber, others with two. the fact that there's no flourish, only mechanical strength behind his attack just makes it easier.

properly on her feet now, ahsoka darts to one side, waiting for anakin to turn and swing again. when she blocks that, his saber close enough to her that her vision seems red hued, she holds that position, staring at his mask.

if she tries hard enough, she can convince herself that that's still her master under there and he would never do anything to hurt her.

but it's more complicated than that and she knows it, so when she leans away to let him attack again, she doesn't bother to dodge it, just jumps back, without looking, and makes sure to shut off her lightsabers before she lands, somewhere far below vader, ready to disappear into the coruscant underworld once again. ]

[Making his opponents surrender isn't his goal, he doesn't allow them to. Instead he fights to wear them down until he can get the opening he needs to strike a fatal blow. She can block every swing because eventually everyone makes a mistake.

She stares at him and he feels almost grateful for the mask between them. The simulated, filtered view making it easier to see her impersonally.

His next swing meets only empty air and he steps forward to look over the edge. Watching as she falls out of sight and into the darkness below. He pauses for a moment before he deactivates his saber and turns to continue his end of their deal.]

quote prompt;

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject